OT: Anyone have experience with insurance companies…

[DAWGSANDSAINTS]

After several months of having a vehicle in a repair shop, the other persons insurance carrier that hit the vehicle decided it was going to be too expensive to follow thru with the repairs and has decided to total it which is a 2021 Mercedes SUV with less than 20,000 miles on it.
The estimate to fix was very high I thought but now we are going to SOL it seems and the other insured is going to get away with paying a deductible only to get their vehicle fixed.
I have zero experience with this kind of thing but feel like I’m about to get royally screwed and end up with very little payout to be able to get a new or even slightly used similar vehicle.
So any help or recommendations/tips would be very appreciated and helpful.

 

[Dawgbite]

Call ya Momma, then call Momma Justice! Don’t accept their first offer. Your insurance should give you some help and guidance, unless you have State Farm, then you’re screwed.

 

[TaleofTwoDogs]

What he said. Talk to your agent also.

 

[AstroDog]

After several months of having a vehicle in a repair shop, the other persons insurance carrier that hit the vehicle decided it was going to be too expensive to follow thru with the repairs and has decided to total it which is a 2021 Mercedes SUV with less than 20,000 miles on it.
The estimate to fix was very high I thought but now we are going to SOL it seems and the other insured is going to get away with paying a deductible only to get their vehicle fixed.
I have zero experience with this kind of thing but feel like I’m about to get royally screwed and end up with very little payout to be able to get a new or even slightly used similar vehicle.
So any help or recommendations/tips would be very appreciated and helpful.

They're supposed to get you a comparable vehicle with all the same features and mileage, etc. Most reputable insurance companies will do that. Just see if their offer will replace what you lost. If not, "Then One Call, That's All"

 

[patdog]

Call ya Momma, then call Momma Justice! Don’t accept their first offer. Your insurance should give you some help and guidance, unless you have State Farm, then you’re screwed.

The cost of an attorney is never going to be worth it on a property damage only auto claim when the vehicle it totaled. Standard practice is for the insurance company to pay full KBB retail value for the car. Attorneys get involved when there's medical payments and/or lost income involved. That's where the money is.

 

[NewTweederEndzoneDance]

Some of adjusters will play hardball with you, but you should research the KBB value of the vehicle you had as well as the cost to you to replace that vehicle with something comparable. Provide that information to the adjuster and tell them that you are not going to accept anything that doesn't make you whole, since their insured was the one at fault and you did nothing wrong to be put in this situation. Hopefully they have been providing you a rental car during the months that your vehicle was in the repair shop too.

If you get stuck in negotiating, the last resort is to tell the adjuster that the next call will be from your attorney. Always helpful if you have a family member or good friend that is an attorney and willing to make that call or even file a Complaint for you free of charge or on a "friends and family rate". Insurance companies know it will cost them more to hire defense counsel than to pay the extra $5k you are asking them to pay to make you whole.

ETA: maybe after providing the information on the amount you are willing to accept you mention that your back has been bothering you since the accident and you are thinking about going to get that checked out.

 

[DAWGSANDSAINTS]

Thank you.
Great information.

Some of adjusters will play hardball with you, but you should research the KBB value of the vehicle you had as well as the cost to you to replace that vehicle with something comparable. Provide that information to the adjuster and tell them that you are not going to accept anything that doesn't make you whole, since their insured was the one at fault and you did nothing wrong to be put in this situation. Hopefully they have been providing you a rental car during the months that your vehicle was in the repair shop too.

If you get stuck in negotiating, the last resort is to tell the adjuster that the next call will be from your attorney. Always helpful if you have a family member or good friend that is an attorney and willing to make that call or even file a Complaint for you free of charge or on a "friends and family rate". Insurance companies know it will cost them more to hire defense counsel than to pay the extra $5k you are asking them to pay to make you whole.

ETA: maybe after providing the information on the amount you are willing to accept you mention that your back has been bothering you since the accident and you are thinking about going to get that checked out.

 

[WrapItDog]

Standard practice is for the insurance company to pay full KBB retail value for the car.

Insurance always pay Actual Cash Value (ACV) plus tax, title, and registration. It's been decades since insurance companies used any kind of book value like KBB etc. to determine the ACV of a totaled auto. Most if not all insurance companies use a third party appraisal service to do an appraisal and detemine the ACV.